CENTRAL - Get on board for fun, food, festivities and more Saturday, April 28 in historic downtown Central, S.C., for a celebration of the town’s railroad heritage, with music and railroad festivities.

The Railroad Festival begins at 10 a.m. and runs until 6 p.m., featuring entertainment, food, music and arts and crafts vendors.

“The Central Railroad Festival has activities for the entire family,” said Bobby Ballentine, festival organizer. “Come spend the day, enjoy the entertainment and the great variety of food. There are tons of free activities for the kids.”

Free entertainment for children will include model train displays, a musical and magic show for children, a balloon artist, a tractor train ride, face painting and a Thomas the Tank Engine display. For rail fans, the Central Railway Museum will be open for free tours. Also, there will be a tour of the Central red caboose.

There will also be live entertainment all day, offering something for young and old alike. Live music will range from jazz to old time rock and roll. There will also be entertainment throughout the day in the kid’s area, near the caboose, including music, clogging and a magic show.

Central restaurants will be open on the day of the festival, offering menus featuring Oriental, Mexican or Seafood. Street vendors will also cater to a variety of tastes, offering pizza, hot dogs, barbecue, nachos, corn dogs, hamburgers, sandwiches, funnel cakes, chicken wings, crab cakes, Italian ice, kettle corn, fried Oreos and more treats.

Clemson Area Transit buses will run continuously, taking festival-goers from parking areas, which include Central Town Hall, New Life Church, Cannon Memorial Baptist Church and Duckett-Robinson Funeral Home. There will also be bus tours of nearby historical sites, including the Central Heritage Museum; and Collins Ole Towne, a recreated 1920’s-era village.

Admission to the festival is free and convenient parking is available.

“There isn’t a festival anywhere that has the variety of free activities for the entire family that you can find at the Central Railroad Festival. Bring the entire family and spend the day. Everyone will have a blast,” Ballentine said.

The Central Railroad Festival is sponsored by the Central Area Business Council and the Clemson Area Chamber of Commerce. The festival is supported by the Town of Central and the Central Railway Museum.

For festival details, call Lindsey Newton at (864) 654-1200 or visit the Central Railroad Festival website at www.centralrrfestival.com. The site includes a map of convenient parking areas.